To Clarify Or Not To Clarify Your Pool?

How do you know if a clarifier is necessary or is working? One subtle way to tell is if you can see particles floating in front of your pool light. Another obvious way is a haze or cloudy pool.

Will a clarifier clear up a cloudy pool? For most clarifiers the answer is no.

Most clarifiers only work on positive and negative ion charges. Thus, the clarifier only works on dead particles. Most clarifiers are polymeric coagulants and have a positive ionic charge and are called cationic clarifiers. The particles that they remove from the pool have a negative electrical charge. The good old opposite attracts principle works here. The particles lump together large enough to filter out.

What happens if the particles don't have a negative charge? The clarifier doesn't work. Algae and many other particles/organisms won't filter out with cationic clarifiers. Are there clarifiers that work on multiple types of cloudiness? Yes, some clarifiers are more complex and can pull algae out of the water, along with other particles that cause hazy or cloudy pools.

Problem: The clarifier did not clear up your pool.

There are many reasons for cloudy water. Below is a list of possible problems: